


While You Were Gone

by APureMagicSheep



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Fluff without Plot, Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda) Fluff, Napping, Not a lot of angst, Pillow & Blanket Forts, Post-Calamity Ganon, Zelda Needs a Hug, Zelda has Short Hair, Zelda steals all of links tunics, and some angst, but like, half a vent fic, i just needed some zelink, just a smidgen, link doesnt mind, look at us now, luckily link exists, okay i lied there's a little bit of plot, this started as two sentences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-25
Updated: 2020-01-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:20:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22363996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/APureMagicSheep/pseuds/APureMagicSheep
Summary: Something crashes before she hears him he sprint up the stairs, blue eyes wide and full of worry, but when he stops to take in the scene in front of him, a small smile graces his lips, and suddenly Zelda’s face feels warm."Zelda, what happened?” He asks quietly.Zelda is definitely blushing. She can feel it now, bright and embarrassing.His smile only widens, and now she wants to clobber his adorably smug face.“I got cold."
Relationships: Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 228





	While You Were Gone

**Author's Note:**

> well, this was _supposed_ to be pure fluff but I am apparently incapable of writing fluff without angst attached so here we are
> 
> _this ends happy i promise don't let the angst tags scare you away_
> 
> Love you guys! Hope you enjoy! <3

Zelda has no idea what to do with herself.

Link does his best to give her options, (they're mostly suggestions to make the passing days not feel like she’s wasting every minute), and for that she’s grateful. It's because of him that she put her princess title aside to give her name meaning again, to make her not feel useless about failing everyone she loved one hundred years ago. Because of him, her hair is gone, cut at her shoulders so it won't get in the way of her learning.

Now she can _do_ things, _useful_ things, like cooking and cleaning and swinging around the front of her horse to mount it and whistling louder than even Link can, which has proved to be helpful more than once. She _feels_ helpful, like she's _doing_ something with her life instead of nothing but _pray_ day in and day out.

Sometimes she wonders what her Father might think of her, or what Hylia might say, but then Link is there, smiling and praising her for every accomplishment, and all thoughts of the goddess are replaced by swells of pride in her chest and warm hugs from the hero of Hyrule.

Today, her newest endeavor is landscaping, or maybe gardening, but right now Link’s horse, Epona, and her own horse, a white mare named Himiko, are out wandering in their yard among the bobbing flower heads and eating fallen apples. Link is wearing a loose white shirt and rolled up pants, looking half asleep whilst settled under the big tree by the pond. Zelda, in a matching outfit with her sleeves rolled up to her elbows, is growing more and more frustrated by the minute.

She can't put any flowers or trees in as long as these _weeds_ are still here, but they're a stubborn bunch. Each one is refusing to budge- the roots are just in too deep.

Luckily, Link showed her how to do it an hour ago, and now she has it down to a science.

Zelda yanks a weed out of the ground with far more force than necessary and throws it over the cliff in one swooping motion. As soon as it's out of sight, she glares down at the next weed, bending over to test the stem. If it’s spiky, she’ll need a knife, and she's _sure_ Link's got one lying around somewhere, or maybe stashed away on his person, who knows. He's _Link,_ surely he's got somethi-

"Uhm...Zelda?"

She growls at the weed in her grip. It won't budge, much to her annoyance, and honestly she has no idea why she's in such a terrible mood. Yesterday was fine, she went to bed glowing with pride about her organization of Purah's library and research notes, but today, her memories are back, and so is her hatred for the goddess, and though it’s a _beautiful_ day outside she’s too stressed and angry to care.

Zelda closes both hands around the plant and yanks it out with as much force as the first, but this time brandishes it at the hero like a weapon, sending a small shower of dirt over his legs.

"Would it have killed you to _weed_ when you bought this place?"

Link looks on calmly, even a little concerned when he answers, "Zel, I had to save you. Weeding didn't seem as important as getting to hold you in my arms again."

Zelda hates the way her face heats at that, and she growls, forcing her gaze away from his _stupid_ blue eyes so she can glare down at the row of weeds by her feet. She's trembling- from rage or sadness or something else- and she grips the plant a little harder.

Why. _Why_ is she so _upset_ and he's so _calm_ and _patient_ all the time? Why is he so _good_ in every way she _isn't?_

A whirlwind of terrible thoughts crashes into whatever trembling mess her lungs just were and the results are tears cascading down her cheeks and a torrent of thoughts.

The world hates her- hates her for _everything_ one hundred years ago- that if she'd gotten a hold of the powers when she was _supposed to_ instead of _right when the carnage started_ she could have _done something to save her people._

Thoughts about the goddess never answering her _once_ in _sixteen_ years follow that, in long, horrible circles until anxiety is wrapped fiercely around her lungs and she-she can barely breathe-

"Zel?"

She flinches at Link's hands on her shoulders- her gaze snaps up but she can't see him through the waterfall in her eyes. He's wiping tears off her face and her lungs are gasping for breath-

"Zelda," he says again when she doesn't answer, her head to busy yelling at her to form words to answer the hero, "What's wrong? Was it something I said?”

Anxiety jabs at her insides. There it is _again._ Why is Link so _good?_

A choking sob escapes her then. It's all too much- the thoughts are swirling around in her brain and she hates herself so, so much.

But then Link is there, pulling her into a tight hug and murmuring words she can't make out. She trembles in his arms, eyes leaking steadily onto his shirt until it's more gray than white, and she cries and cries.

She heaves in breath after breath until, finally-

"...not going to leave you..."

Her lungs are letting air in again- she can breathe. She can hear him.

"You're safe, Zel. I'm right here, yeah? I'm not going to leave you."

She presses closer, the anxiety gone, and Link nuzzles her gently, and tells her softly that he loves her.

Zelda takes a deep breath, snakes her arms around him until she’s hugging him in return, and believes him.

"Zelda," He whispers.

She lays her head on his shoulder and looks up through her hair.

Above her, he smiles with every bit of blue in his eyes.

"How does a nice cup of warm milk sound?"

*****

A cup of warm milk is set out on the table in front of her, with thin lines of steam drifting up to the ceiling.

She is suddenly very, very tired and just wants to get in bed, but Link insisted she stay up for a little while longer. Something about lunch and hearty radish stew.

Link is behind her, working at the stove and humming brightly as he mixes ingredients in a pot, and it's...adorable, actually. He didn't used to do that.

Zelda turns to him in time to see him lift a cup of milk to his lips. His singing is cut off by a yelp, and he scrambles for a chunk of ice to put in his mouth.

Zelda giggles, and he looks at her, a half-wounded look on his face, and she feels a smile tug at her lips for the first time today.

Link beams at her.

"There you are!" He says brightly, talking around the ice in his mouth and spooning some soup into a bowl without looking, "I thought you turned into a witch."

"I _am_ a witch," Zelda answers as he sets the bowl in front of her, "I've cursed you to never be able to sing again."

"That’s so sad. I loved to sing...” Link sighs dramatically.

After a moment, he tries to look thoughtful, "But then again, I couldn't sing before, so I'm not sure much has changed..."

Zelda laughs, and Link smiles at her again.

In a flick of his wrist, a spoon appears in his hand, and he bows as he presents it to her.

"Where did that come from?" She asks, accepting and turning it over in her hands.

"Magic, m'lady," He answers, sweeping his arms dramatically as he returns to the pot, "A good magician never reveals his secrets.”

Zelda scoffs playfully and Link pouts at her. Both are smiling.

He spoons some for himself, and Zelda dips her spoon into the bowl. She blows on it before taking it to her mouth, and finds that it is delicious. So are the wildberries he keeps setting down for her.

”These came from a girl in Gerudo Town,” Link says to her as he settles with his own bowl and pile of wildberries. He leans on his elbows, chin cradled in his hands, “Would you like to hear a story?”

”Yes please.”

So he tells her a story, about a little girl in Gerudo Town named Dalia, who dreamed of having a garden, a woman named Calyban eating hydromelons and a ruined water supply. She hears about his long trek around the cliffs of the Gerudo Highlands, how finding ten berries was nearly impossible with all the coyotes after him. By the end of his story, her soup is finished and her milk is gone, her eyelids are drooping and Link's smile only grows.

"Finished?" He asks her gently, and she nods. She yawns while he collects their bowls, then rubs at her eyes, suddenly exhausted.

"Why don't you head on upstairs and I'll be up in a minute to tuck you in?"

Zelda nods again. That sounds lovely.

She pushes herself up and climbs the stairs sleepily, only stopping at Link's dresser to fish out a pair of sneaky armor pants from the bottom drawer- they're light, breathable- (her favorite thing to sleep in, despite the fact that they're Link's), and changes out of her work pants.

She slides into the leggings and sits on the bed while she unrolls her sleeves, listening to Link's bright humming as he cleans the dishes downstairs.

This is one of her favorite parts of living with Link. Just being able to _live,_ not as a princess and a knight, but as normal people who do normal things. Like hum over soup, or burn their tongues with hot milk.

Zelda laughs sleepily to herself, and soon Link appears upstairs. Link really never stops smiling, she decides, watching his lips curl up again. He pets her hair gently in greeting, something she will never admit she loves.

"And how long would you like to sleep for, Zel?" He asks, reaching behind her to fluff up a pillow.

Zelda hums. "Wake me in an hour?"

"Of course," Link places the pillow back on the bed and pulls back the blanket, letting Zelda lay back herself to get comfortable.

Once she's settled, he pulls the blanket up to her chin, leans down, places a small kiss on her forehead, and straightens.

"Sweet dreams, Zelda."

*****

Link is not there when Zelda wakes up.

It was disorienting at first. She's used to bright humming or gentle shaking before Link takes more drastic measures to wake her up, but this time it's still. Quiet.

Too quiet.

She has to open her eyes to remind herself that she isn't alone in a castle, surrounded by dark, dark, dark and frigid cold on every side, keeping the calamity as contained as she possibly could, so tightly packed around her she forgot how to breathe some days.

It was so cold she could not feel any part of her body for nearly a century.

But she can certainly feel it now.

And she is cold.

Much too cold.

Zelda slides out of bed and hurries on her toes downstairs, where most of their spare blankets are stashed. She gathers as many as will fit in her arms and hurries up the stairs again.

She drops the blankets onto the bed in a satisfying _whump,_ and something catches her eye when it falls off the side table. When she bends to pick it up, she sees her name written at the top in Link's handwriting.

_Zelda! :D_

_If you're reading this, then you probably woke up while i was gone. don't worry! i'm just getting a couple of things for dinner, i'll be back soon, i promise. if you want any more food, it's packaged away downstairs. i trust you with fire, so if you'd like it warm, you don't have to wait for me :)_

_i love you to the moon and back!_

_< 3/ Link_

Zelda's lips quirk up at each smile and heart he put onto the page, and she sets it delicately back on the side table.

He'll be back. It'll be okay.

But she's still cold. Cold cold cold.

Another trip down and up, she's got another collection of blankets to add to her pile.

Every blanket in the house is on the bed now. It'll probably be enough.

She wants Link to be here. She wants to hug him and feel his hands in her hair and rubbing her back.

She wants to hear him say "love you to the moon and back" in _person._

But he isn't here, so she settles for the next best thing.

She opens the second drawer of Link's dresser and fishes out the Champion's Tunic, the blue shining proudly in the fading light.

She brings it to her face and takes a deep breath. Link's scent is almost enough to calm her.

Without another thought, she pulls it over her head, adjusts it so it fits her correctly, and hurries to wrap herself up in the massive pile of blankets on the bed.

So many layers. She keeps her head as uncovered as she can, so she doesn't get claustrophobic. She hugs herself and pretends it's Link hugging her instead, and eventually falls into an uneasy sleep.

*****

Zelda awakens again when the front door opens.

She knows it's Link. No one else has footsteps that sound like that.

"Zel?" Link calls.

"Mm awake," She calls back, "Can you- can you come? Please?"

Something crashes as she hears him he sprint up the stairs, blue eyes wide and full of worry, but when he stops to take in the scene in front of him, a small smile graces his lips, and suddenly Zelda’s face feels warm.

"Zelda, what happened?” He asks quietly.

Zelda is definitely blushing. She can feel it now, bright and embarrassing.

His smile only widens, and now she wants to clobber his adorably smug face.

“I got cold."

He softens at that.

"Cold how, Zel?"

She looks away, pulling the blankets closer.

"Really cold.”

There’s no reply from the hero, but now the blankets around her are shifting.

They're pulled away from her enough for Link to climb into the cocoon with her, legs sliding into place beside hers as he adjusts the blankets to rest around them. He lays against the pillows and reaches out to pet her hair. Her eyes drift shut.

For a moment, the world is quiet. But it's a nice sort of quiet; when Link's warmth is right there and she can snuggle into his chest like it was made for her.

"Uhm, Zel," His voice is laced through with soft amusement, "Is that my tunic?"

Zelda hums.

"And...are those my pants?"

"I have no idea why you’d think that."

She feels more than hears his laugh, and that almost makes her smile.

"Zel, we can get you your own armor, Kakariko isn’t that far away."

Zelda opens her eyes and pulls back until she meets Link’s brilliant blue ones. He isn’t upset at all, she can tell from the amusement dancing across his face.

“But Link,” she answers, reaching out to twine their fingers together, “Why would I get my own clothes when I can steal yours?”

He laughs at that. A smile tugs at her own lips.

”But Zel, I need my clothes back eventually. I’ll run out if you keep stealing them.”

“If you don’t want me to steal your clothes, stop buying things that are so comfortable.”

”Zel, you _made_ that tunic.”

”Your point?”

He laughs again, shoulders shaking against the bed, then shifts closer and presses his forehead to hers. In a flutter of eyelids, their eyes are closed.

She can feel Link’s hand in her hair, petting her gently.

”You can steal my clothes whenever you want, Zelda. I don’t mind.”

Her lips quirk up.

”Thank you.”

Their silence after that is comforting. Zelda slides closer until she’s pressed against him, and he lets her, gently petting her hair and humming a familiar lullaby.

She closes her eyes but does not fall asleep again.

After a while, she pulls back and looks at him again.

”Where’s your heartbeat?”

Link’s humming stops.

His arms stop at her back and he pulls one away to feel around his chest for his heartbeat.

“Try here,” he answers softly, pressing one spot on his shirt.

She turns onto her back and slides down the bed a ways. He moves his hand so she can press her ear to his chest. After a minute of adjusting, she catches it, a soft thump-thump to show that he is, in fact, alive.

She lifts her own hand and presses two fingers to her neck, feeling her own pulse and Link's together.

”Ganon didn’t have that,” she says softly.

”He didn’t?”

”At first he did,” she pulls her hand away from her neck and lets it rest on her chest, “It was all I could hear for the first while. Then it kind of faded to a stop.”

She pulls away from his chest and pushes herself back up so they're face to face again, “I knew when my power was weakening because I could hear his heartbeat getting stronger.”

”That’s terrifying.”

Zelda takes a deep breath.

"Yes. It was."

After a moment of silence, Link reaches out to take her hands again.

”I did that to Sidon once.”

”Did what?”

”Tried to feel his heartbeat. But he was really shy about picking me up back then so I just climbed right up him.”

Zelda breathes a laugh, "I remember that. Poor shark was so embarrassed."

"He's adorable when he's embarrassed," Link answers wistfully, "He'd be even cuter if Zora could blush."

Zelda laughs at him again before sliding closer under the blankets. He tucks her under his chin and keeps her close.

"Zel?" He whispers, and she hums to show she's listening.

"Would you do this for me?"

"Comfort you when you're ready to destroy the world?"

"Yeah."

Zelda snakes her arms around him and squeezes.

"Of course, Link."

Link's answer to that is impossibly soft.

"Thank you."

*****

They lay together until the outside world has drifted into glowing twilight, and they only get up because Link says he "really needs to pee." Zelda practically shoves him out of bed when he reveals that fact.

The end result is the hero of hyrule landing on his butt in a pile of at least a dozen blankets, and Zelda snorts a laugh when he _pouts_ at her.

"But Zeeeeeelllll I was so coooomfyyyyyy..."

"Too bad," Zelda answers, "Go take care of it like a big boy."

He pouts at her but pushes himself upright, heading downstairs to do just that.

When he comes back, Zelda has unwrapped herself from her cocoon. Blankets are spilling all across the bed and the floor- Link has to wade through them to get to her.

She holds out her arms to him.

"Hold me."

Link smiles.

"As you wish."

He leans over so she can wrap her arms around his neck before he lifts her up in a bridal carry.

Zelda doesn't think she'll ever be able to explain just how impossibly safe she feels in Link's arms.

When she looks up, Link smiles down at her.

"Where to, Zelda?"

She lays her head on his shoulder. His grip doesn't waver, not even for a second.

"Dinner."

"Oooo, I agree," He starts towards the stairs, "How do meat and rice balls sound?"

*****

Maybe grabbing every blanket in the house wasn't the best idea. They do have to sleep in this bed, after all.

"We own a lot of blankets," Link observes.

Zelda finishes folding a dark blue blanket and sets it on top of the pile of folded blankets on their bed, then hums in agreement.

"We should do something with them."

Zelda looks down at the hero, who has a half folded red-orange blanket in his lap.

There's a hint of excitement in his eyes and fluttering of a smile on his lips, and she wonders if perhaps she should be excited as well.

So she says, simply, "What did you have in mind?"

*****

The blanket fort is coming along nicely.

Turns out buying all those pillows from Bolson was one of the greatest ideas he's ever had, because now Zelda is on their bed, stacking pillows and handing off corners of blankets. They're working by the light of two lanterns, one inside the fort and one outside, and in the dark Zelda's golden hair and brilliant smile makes her look like an angel, and Link doesn't think he's ever been so happy in his entire life.

They've made...some sort of structure out of the blankets. He isn't exactly sure what they were going for, cause the shape looks a little bit like Gerudo town, with the side over their bed higher than the rest, but because of the mix of bright and dark colors it kind of looks like Death Mountain in a soft, huggable sort of way.

"Are you sure this will stay up?" Zelda pokes her head out of the hole in the top, startling him.

"Yep," He answers, tying the blanket securely around the banister. The other side of the blanket is buried by other pillows and some books weighing it down, and he knows for a fact that it is absolutely going to fall at some point tonight.

"You're absolutely sure?" Zelda asks warily as he pulls a black blanket from the pile of unfolded blankets, "It doesn't feel very secure."

Link holds two corners of the blanket and spreads it out, "It'll be fine, Zel. Promise."

The black blanket is full of tiny holes. A memory flashes in his mind. This is the blanket he was wrapped in when the Bokoblin scouts in the one tower-thing spotted him. He was hit by exactly thirty-seven arrows and almost died, (a record that has never been broken, thankfully), but there are far more than thirty-seven holes in this blanket.

Suddenly Link has an idea.

"You ready to finish this thing off?"

Zelda looks up at him and nods.

"Duck."

She ducks back inside, laying flat on the bed, and Link flashes his biggest smile before covering the opening with the black blanket in his hands.

"Link?" Zelda calls warily from the other side of the blankets.

"I'm coming," He answers, "Wait for me."

He ducks down and slides through the small opening at the base of the fort. Through it is the lantern on the floor, and Zelda laying on their bed, her green eyes glowing beautifully from the light of the lantern.

She relaxes somewhat when their eyes meet, and he slides across the floor. He puts out the lantern before climbing up to lay next to her.

"Look," Zelda whispers, golden hair spread across the pillow as she takes his hand in hers.

The light of the lantern outside glows through the lighter blankets and the holes in the black blanket. It feels like a part of the night sky is in their bedroom, glimmering with constellations meant for only them.

"They look like stars," Zelda whispers like a secret. He can hear the smile in her voice.

Part of him feels like he's stargazing, and he wonders if Zelda feels that way too.

In one small movement, their fingers are intertwined, and he answers with a gentle, "They do."

Then, for a moment, the only thing in the entire world is him, her, and a blanket filled with starlight.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for 100 Kudos!! All of you are incredible <3
> 
> Always feel free to request more Zelink oneshots, either here in the comments or on [tumblr](https://a-pure-magic-sheep.tumblr.com/), because I will never get sick of writing these two :D
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful day!!


End file.
